Gonorrhea, or the medical name gonorrhea, is an infection that occurs most often during sexual intercourse. But in homosexuals, as well as those engaged in oral satisfaction, the infection can spread to the anal area and oral cavity. Do not neglect its spread to the eyes and skin.
The causative agent of the disease is Neisseria gonorrhoeae. This type of bacteria is quite unstable in the external environment and can remain on linen for up to 24 hours. In addition to the sexual partner, the infection can also be spread through touch and a personal toilet. But gonococci can be quite resistant once they enter the human body.
Predisposing factors for infection are the days when a woman is menstruating, more temperamental sexual intercourse, drinking in large quantities, as well as frequent and prolonged sexual excesses.
What are the main non-genital forms of gonorrhea?
- Proctitis or inflammation of the rectum – occurs in both heterosexuals and homosexuals who practice anal sex. Manifested by irritation in this area, a feeling of pain, especially during defecation. Purulent yellow-green discharge may ooze from the anus. But more often inflammation in this area is asymptomatic. Other less common symptoms may be wounding of the area and the formation of ulcers, which are found during rectoscopes.
- Conjunctivitis – infection can occur during natural childbirth when the mother passes the infection to the child during his passage through the birth canal. In adults, it most often occurs a few days after the onset of gonococcal urethritis. An infectious disease that can be mistaken for staphylococcal conjunctivitis.
- Pharyngitis and tonsillitis are most often the result of orogenital contact or known in society as oral love. This is the redness of the tonsils and mucous membranes of the throat. It can be asymptomatic and not in a small percentage, which is a prerequisite for its transmission during kissing.
- The cutaneous form of the scar is also called gonococcal chancre and is a painless 1-1.5 cm rash located on reddened skin.
The disseminated form is when the infection captures other organs and systems, spreading through the blood, lymphatic or neighboring tracts. Manifestations can be from inflammation of the joints, muscles, skin, kidneys, heart, liver, etc.
The most common manifestation of the disseminated form is arthritis. The tissue around the joint is most commonly affected. The large joints of the lower extremities are most commonly affected. The prognosis is poor when the evolution comes to the immobilization of the joint – ankylosing. To confirm the infection, it is necessary to take fluid from the joint and conduct a microbiological study. In the morning, when moving, the joints are stiff and painful.
A severe prognosis is a damage to the heart, especially its valves. Because this can lead to their perforation, as a result of the inflammatory process. The diagnosis is made with the help of a blood test – a blood culture.
Less commonly, the liver can be affected with inflammation – most often on the liver capsule – the so-called perihepatitis. Part of the abdominal wall may also be involved. This complication tends to be more common in women.
How to diagnose and how treat an infection?
To isolate the pathogen, microbiological culture is carried out. Depending on resistance and sensitivity to certain antibiotics, several treatment regimens are recommended. There are schemes that provide for a single administration of an antibiotic, as well as those in which the course of an antibiotic lasts several days.
